The emergence of the Internet as a major source of information and/or communication for many consumers has led to the development of numerous websites that are either devoted to, or at least include, business and/or product review and/or ratings systems. Herein, websites devoted to, or at least including, business and/or product review and/or ratings systems are generically referred to as Internet based business ratings/review systems.
A typical Internet based business ratings/review system provides a review forum, and/or ratings system, and/or recommendation service, whereby consumers can share their opinions of a given business and/or product with other potential consumers of the business and/or product. Typically, these Internet based business ratings/review systems are provided as either the primary focus of a given website, such as a consumer watchdog or consumer report website, or as a feature of a website devoted to other purposes, such as the sale of various products and/or services or an on-line auction.
One indicator of the increasing presence, and importance, of Internet based business ratings/review systems is the fact that the number of Internet based business ratings/review systems associated with specific businesses and/or products doubled from 2006 to 2007. In addition, it is estimated that 98% of consumers now use the ratings and/or review data contained in one or more Internet based business ratings/review systems to guide their purchasing decisions. Consequently, Internet based business ratings/review systems have considerable, and seemingly ever increasing, power in both the electronic commerce and “brick and mortar” marketplaces. As a result, it is very important to all businesses, and small businesses in particular, that they maintain a positive reputation on Internet based business ratings/review systems.
In fact, recent data indicates that, on average, for every unresolved negative on-line review/rating a business receives via an Internet based business ratings/review system, that business loses 10 potential customers. In addition, over 13% of customers who are unhappy enough to submit a negative review/rating via an Internet based business ratings/review system will go on to personally tell 20 or more people about their negative experience. On the other hand, an excellent on-line reputation can not only ensure customers, or more customers, for a given business, it can also provide the business with the opportunity to charge higher prices, based in part on their historical reputation established by positive reviews/ratings, and thereby increase their profit. This is particularly true for service related businesses, but it also applies to product-based businesses, especially when the product is being purchased sight unseen over the Internet, or when warranties are involved.
As noted above, the number of Internet based business ratings/review systems is constantly growing. Therefore, despite the importance of maintaining a positive on-line reputation, as discussed above, it is often too difficult for a given business owner/manager, and particularly a small business owner, to find the time and/or other resources, to monitor the on-line reputation of their business, as established on multiple, and often unknown and ever changing websites having Internet based business ratings/review systems. Indeed, some small business owners are not even aware of the number of Internet based business ratings/review systems or even that they have an on-line reputation.
In addition, even in the case where a business owner/manager does find the time and/or other resources, to monitor the on-line reputation of the business, it is typically done on a low priority and/or “as-time permits” basis. As a result, in many cases, a significant amount of time can pass between when the on-line reputation of a business is threatened and when the business owner/manager is actually made aware of the situation.
This time lapse between when a negative review/rating is submitted and when the business owner/manager becomes aware of the negative review/rating is problematic for at least three reasons. First, as noted above, for every unresolved negative on-line review/rating a business receives, that business loses 10 potential customers and over 13% of customers who are unhappy enough to submit a negative review/rating will go on to personally tell 20 or more people about their negative experience. Consequently, it is in the business' best interest to become aware of, and/or respond to, a negative on-line review/rating as soon as possible, preferably before the negative review/rating can do any damage and/or the unhappy customer can spread the news. Second, in 95% of the cases where the issues giving rise to the negative on-line review/rating are addressed by the business quickly, and fairly, the customer is willing to use the business again, i.e., the customer remains a customer of the business. Third, a negative review/rating is often the first indication a business owner or manger has that a given practice is problematic, or that a given incident has occurred. Consequently, a negative review/rating can serve as constructive criticism regarding a given business practice that often should be addressed/modified as soon as possible.
In addition, even in the cases where a business owner/manager does find the time and/or other resources to monitor their on-line reputation, currently the business owner/manager is still not provided with any guidance regarding how to improve, or maintain, and/or establish the on-line reputation of their business or any mechanism for taking action.
As a result of the current situation discussed above, many businesses lose significant numbers of customers, and/or potential customers, every day because they lack accurate and/or up-to-date data regarding the on-line reputation of their businesses.